Aytoun, II, 239, says of ‘Richie Storie,’ The words, recast in a
romantic form and applied to a more interesting subject, have been set
to music by a noble lady, and are now very popular under the title of
‘Huntingtower.’ The history of ‘Huntingtower’ is not so well known as
might be expected. I have not been able to ascertain the authorship or
the date of its first appearance (which was very probably in society
rather than in print). ‘Richie Storie’ is not carried by our texts
further back than 1802–3 (#B#, #H#). Kinloch published in 1827 a ballad
from recitation, ‘The Duke of Athol,’ which is ‘Huntingtower’ passed
through the popular mouth; for ‘Huntingtower’ became, and has continued
to be, a favorite with the people. Christie, Traditional Ballad Airs, I,
166, says that he had often heard ‘The Duke of Athol’ in his early
years, and he gives eight stanzas which do not differ remarkably from
Kinloch’s ballad.
The marks of the derivation of ‘Huntingtower’ are the terminations of
lines 1, 2, 4 of each stanza, and substantial agreements in the last two
stanzas with #A#, #B#, #E#, 5, #D#, #F#, #G#, 4, and with #B# 6, #C# 7,
#H#, respectively. The name Huntingtower occurs only in #B# 6 of ‘Richie
Storie.’ The author of ‘Huntingtower’ was no doubt possessed of a
version of ‘Richie Storie’ which had its own peculiarities.
‘Huntingtower’ is too well known to require citing. It has been often
printed; as, for example, in Mr G. F. Graham’s Popular Songs of
Scotland, revised by J. Muir Wood, Balmoral Edition, Glasgow, 1887, p.
152; The Songs of Scotland, the words revised by Dr Charles Mackay, p.
5, London, Boosey & Co. (Altered by the Baroness Nairne, and very little
left of it, Life and Songs of the Baroness Nairne, edited by the Rev.
Charles Rogers, 1872, p. 177.) The pleasing air strongly resembles, says
Mr Wood, one in D’Urfey’s Pills to Purge Melancholy, V, 42, ed. 1719.
‘The Duke of Athol’ may be given for the interest it has as a popular
_rifacimento_.